States can have sub-groups among SC/ST

States can have sub-groups among SC/ST

Part of: GS-Prelims and GS-II – Welfare schemes

In News:

• Recently, the Supreme Court held that States can sub-classify Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) in the Central List.

Key takeaways from Justice Arun Mishra’s judgement:

• Reservation has created inequalities within the reserved castes itself. 
• Benefits of reservation are being used by a few.
• Caste, occupation, and poverty are interwoven. 
• The State cannot be deprived of the power to take care of the qualitative and quantitative differences between different classes.
• ST and SC in the Central List do not constitute a homogenous group.

Do you know?

• The judgment is significant as it will provide the push to extend the creamy layer concept to the SC and ST.
• In 2004, the Chinnaiah judgment had held that allowing the States to unilaterally make a class within a class of members of the SC would lead to changes in the Presidential list.
• The issue has now been referred to a seven-judge Bench of the court.

Important value additions 

• The Central List of SC and ST are notified by the President under Articles 341 and 342 of the Constitution. 
• The consent of the Parliament is required to exclude or include castes in the List. 
• Thus, States cannot unilaterally add or pull out castes from the List.
• The Supreme Court has reasoned that sub-classifications within the Presidential/Central List do not amount to changing it. No caste is excluded from the list.